Bluefield State College Faculty Present Two Papers at the 2011 American Society of Engineering Education Conference

(BLUEFIELD)— Two scholarly papers prepared and submitted by Bluefield State College faculty members have been accepted for presentation at the 118th Annual American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE) Conference and Exposition to be held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on June 26 - 29, 2011. The conference brings together an assembly of more than 3000 engineering educators, vendors, and publishers.

One of the papers describes the collaborations with local industry arising from operations of the Center for Applied Research and Technology, Inc. (CART) at Bluefield State College (BSC). The paper, “"Benefits of Small College-Industry Partnerships for Training Program Development” will be presented by Roy Pruett (Professional Engineer and Professor of Electrical Engineering Technology (ELET)) and was co-authored by Bruce Mutter (CEO/Chair, CART).

ASEE reviewers commented on the paper that it is a, “wonderful example of collaborative effort and integration with real-world practice and professionals. I like hearing about the Applied Research Assistantship Program (ARAP) and how it has been implemented and received. I perceive this as quite valuable.”

Another ASEE reviewer added that “the evolving interactions between CART, ARAP, ELET and other program constituencies are well documented and presented in a smooth process flow. While the utilization of an Industrial Advisory Committee (IAC) is neither new nor unique, the ability to use this group to better the community, bring in new industry and enhance student experience is laudable.

A third reviewer added that “the Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC) perspective is right on target with other schools. These programs increased industry engagement via advisory committees and better maintains currency in the discipline and in the field for students and faculty.”